


Uninstall

by Beltenebra



Category: Johnny's Entertainment, NewS (Band)
Genre: Alien Invasion, Angst, Dark, End of the World, Gen, Mecha, Psychological Trauma, Science Fiction
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-28
Updated: 2016-10-28
Packaged: 2018-08-27 13:59:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8404330
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beltenebra/pseuds/Beltenebra
Summary: Earth is threatened and NewS does their best to stem the tide.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This came out of left field and demanded to be written. It is inspired by the manga/anime [Bokurano](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bokurano) and its theme song "Uninstall". You can check out the translation [here](http://www.animelyrics.com/anime/bokurano/uninstall.htm) They really set the tone for the entire thing.

Koyama wiped his sweaty palms on the strangely absorbent material of the plug-suit. It was unlike anything he'd ever worn. It fit like a second skin, it managed to feel even more supple than his naked skin. He found it ironic given that the most comfortable garment he had ever worn would also be his last. 

_No one could ever have predicted it when the aliens hit Earth. No government had systems advanced enough to detect the attack. The strange colossal almost organic robots appeared in the middle of Tokyo without so much as a blip on the radars. Except that_ someone _knew. A strange man in a crisp white coat had been waiting for them in their meeting room. He wouldn't explain who he was or how he got there, only why. He wanted to discuss the end of the world._

He slid down into the cockpit of the mech; the controls were perfectly arranged for his limbs, every button and dial within reach, the seat cradling his lanky body. He wrapped graceful hands around the steering apparatus and chuckled, it was a low, mirthless sound in the close quiet of the machine. He had never been particularly good at video games but this machine seemed to respond to his very thoughts. 'It's impossible to lose' he thought, and laughed again, a harsh sound that trailed off into a hoarse sob. But he didn't cry. He had run out of tears after Tegoshi died. 

_The man told them they were Earth's last line of defense, the planet's only hope. The first wave of news reports had hit just a few hours ago. Some alien thing was wreaking controlled havoc in Akihabara. The reports were confused, thousands were dead and injured but the invader seemed to be holding back… waiting for something. The man confirmed the suspicion with a grim nod. He told them the aliens were waiting for their opponents, that Earth pilots were supposed to suit up and face them. He said they were the chosen ones. The room had been deadly silent for a full minute until Yamapi stepped forward, his face serious and his eyes deadly earnest. He shook Koyama's restraining hand off his shoulder and nodded once. "What do I need to do?"_

He adjusted the earpiece and mechanically read through the check-list with whoever was in the control room. It was nearly time, not long now. He would need exactly ten minutes to fully synchronize with his machine. He trailed his fingertips over the cool metal, imagining he could almost feel the machine breathing, the cockpit shifting imperceptibly with the rise and fall of his chest. He flipped the switch when the voice in his ear told him to. His lips moved silently with the numbers on the small screen as his consciousness slipped down, down, down, merging with the mech. He wondered if it could feel his emotions as well as his thoughts, or if they were just registered on a print-out somewhere. He wondered if the tower crew would divine them in time to stop him. 

_Yamapi beat the thing of course. He was Yamapi, he was the best of them all. He had donned the suit and endured their gallows humor, jokes about looking like an anime character, with a smile that didn't reach his eyes. He told them he would be strong, that he would prevail, because he had so many things to protect. They believed in him absolutely. Their shouts of exaltation were nearly drowned out when the vicious ball of flame that claimed the alien suddenly expanded, fast as blinking and engulfed Yamapi's mech in its deadly embrace. The crackling static of Pi's broken comm link was the only sound in the control room for a heartbeat, until Ryo started screaming for answers and Koyama started sobbing._

_They had assumed that it was a freak coincidence, that Pi hadn't known to get out of the range of his own weapon in time. When the second one came Ryo swore he would be careful. Care had nothing to do with it. But they didn't know that. Ryo fought as fiercely as his warrior heart bid him, with the weight of his leader's death and the hopes of a planet on his shoulders. The monster went down with an inhuman shriek, Ryo's mech dropped to its knees, his breathing was labored over the speakers. But they looked at each other with hope, he was still breathing. When the retrieval team cracked the cockpit, his face was smooth, peaceful, and beautiful as ever. He wasn't breathing when they pulled him out._

Koyama was tired, he was so tired. The countdown continued and he followed along with the voice and it read the descending numbers. He had never gotten to talk to any of his friends about the experience of actually piloting these things. He could feel his limbs becoming heavy, almost, while at the same time expanding outwards gaining a range of motion so far beyond his experience it hurt his head to try to encompass the thought. He felt like he was meditating, his mind was quiet in a way it had never been before. Although before he had been carefree, happy, his mind full of schedules and appointments. Who could say what the effects of concentrated tragedy were on the psyche. Tegoshi would probably know. He could almost hear his golden laughter, but no matter how far he reached out, he would never again touch the bright edge of that smile. He wondered just how complete the synchronization was… if he screamed would the machine scream with him? 

_Tegoshi's eyes had been full of confidence, but not his usual brash belief that he could conquer anything he set his mind to. This was a dire sort of confidence born out of the knowledge that he didn't have any choice but to succeed. He had given them all a brave smile, assured them that he would be just fine, hadn't he been born to be a hero, after all? He let his eyes go soft when he looked at Koyama, he promised he would come back._

_He came back alright. He won his battle and even climbed almost all of the way out of his mech under his own power. He fell the last few feet and they watched with their hearts in their throats as the scientists told them it was probably just fatigue. Tegoshi was brought in on a stretcher, clutching his head, his bright eyes blank and staring at something they couldn't see. He didn't last long. Tegoshi died screaming._

_Hours later Shige and Masuda, hollow-eyed, had trailed off somewhere to try and get some sleep. Koyama stayed by Tegoshi's bed, now empty, having long since wept himself dry. The man in the white coat came in and Koyama rounded on him, moving quick like an animal. He pinned the man to the wall with a forearm across his neck and demanded to know what was going on. To tell him what he knew. The man smiled remarked that he must be the smart one. He told Koyama that they had to keep winning or the planet would be destroyed but that every win inevitably cost the victor his life. There wasn't any other way. The violence went out of him in a rush when it sank in. He could only ask his next question in a soft, defeated voice, "How long?"_

_The man's smile edged into sadness when he replied, "Until there are none left." But he didn't say who he was referring to and Koyama hadn't had the courage to ask._

Things were just about ready, he was perfectly relaxed, resigned to his fate. The signal sounded in his ear, softly reverberating through his head and he moved forward. He could see his opponent more and more clearly as he closed the distance between them. The machine responded perfectly to his every wisp of thought. He could see how someone might even exalt in this feeling. He felt powerful. 

He had volunteered for the next instance. The man nodded; his eyes met Koyama's and Koyama was sure the man had predicted this. But he didn't know everything. He had let Koyama suit up and go into battle, after all. He smiled a bit, clearly the man wasn't as omniscient as he would like to be. 

The alien was very close now. Up close it was terrifying, utterly unknowable, inspiring a sick sort of dread roiling in the pit of his stomach. His first instinct was to lash out, to destroy, to wipe the thing off the face of his home world. 

He thought about his family, his mother and sister and his little nephews. He would miss them, would miss sun drenched afternoons in the park and late nights at the shop. He thought of Shige and Masuda, he wouldn't let them experience this horror. He wouldn't make them stand in that room, watching and knowing that one more of their friends was gone, that it was only a matter of time until they too went down that dark road. 

They were heroes sure, real idols at the very end. They were saving the world… but at what cost? Their lives balanced against the continued survival of Earth. It seemed like an easy answer for someone who cared as much as him. But how long would it last? Would people have to live beneath the shadow of this threat, continually offering up brave soldiers like burnt offerings? 

No. That was no kind of life. Koyama loved too fiercely to allow that. He would save them all. If that's what Earth was to become, then Earth could perish. 

He dropped his arms and closed his eyes. He barely registered the sounds of increasing panic coming from the control tower, increasingly desperate commands that no longer had the power to reach him. 

He was done. The end came quickly.


End file.
